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Philip Sowden updated 2016 CV
- 1. Philip Sowden 17 Portside,Brighton Marina Village, Brighton, East Sussex Mobile: 07548982802 , Land-line:01273959328, Email: chucklesister@googlemail.com Profile I am a confident, self motivated and proactive person who has a wealth of experience within administration and customer service. My career to date shows that I am highly organised, have a keen eye for detail, have excellent communication skills and I am fluent in all Microsoft packages. I also have a very flexible approach to work and quickly adapt to new environments. I am available for interview at your convenience. Employment History Palms Properties- Estate Agent August 2015 - May 2016 I worked for Palms Properties Letting Agents in Brighton. The company is a on-site agency dedicated to Brighton Marina. The company was founded more than eighteen years ago Palms Properties understand the workings of the Marina and can provide unrivalled expertise on all of the properties for sale and to let in Brighton Marina. Also expanded into holiday rentals and short term lettings in Brighton which I dealt with in the holiday-lettings department. My duties include:- lTyping all property particulars, valuation reports, letters etc. lOrganising the appointments diary for property viewings. lMaintaining the window display and circulation of property details. lResponding to Holiday enquiries via telephone and email. lVet prospective tenants by collecting references and carrying out credit checks. lEnsure properties meet legal and health and safety requirements, e.g. gas safety certificates. lDraw up tenancy agreement contracts. lCollect or organise rent payments. lAct as a property manager and resolve any issues that arise with properties. HMP Hull-Business Administration & HMP LEWES-Business Administrator
- 2. March 2015 -August 2015 HMP Hull requested me back to complete the hand over all accounts & the department of maintenance for the prison to the new contractor. This is due to part of the prison being privatise and has to be completed by June. It is my responsibility to tie up loose ends on accounts and explain any budget discrepancies / over spends. Making sure that hand over is smooth and completed with in the time frame. This involves making sure that all outstanding invoices for the financial year are paid and completed by April. If there is any outstanding work to be done in the prison it is part of my job to chase contractors to make sure completed for handover. This is a extra part of my role until handover is completed. Please see full job role further down on my CV. I was first in this role between August 2013 to October 2014. I was requested in June 2015 to transfer to HMP Lewes and please find below a breakdown of some duties which I was asked to perform:- My duties include:- lOrganise, produce and maintain accurate records for area of work lAct as contact point for all communications to the team. Prioritise and distribute communications to the appropriate person or relevant department in establishment lComplete monitoring returns for area of work lInput requisitions on to the finance database and process requisitions for defined area of work lCo-ordinate any awareness sessions for area of work lPrepare paperwork for checking by manager, conducting initial checks as required lCorrespond with relevant stakeholders and agencies to ensure that they are aware of information so that information is adequately shared lMaintain and check establishment databases, manual filing systems and logs of information, responding within agreed time-scales and producing reports as required lCollate information relating to relevant Service Delivery Indicators (SDI’s) lAct as secretary to meetings as required including organising agenda, taking, distributing minutes and action points Arvato- Contact Advisor- Telephone Negotiation October 2014 to March 2015 My position in a thriving collections team - the department that is responsible for minimising losses through the collection of accounts where the customer has missed
- 3. payments. The departmenthandles a large variety of calls, ranging from taking debit card payments to assisting customers with more severe financial difficulties. My duties include:- lReview accounts that are behind on their payments to determine appropriate action lContact customers to agree satisfactory payment arrangements lAnswer customer enquiries lEnsure compliance in the completion of DPA on every call lDiscuss options available to customers who are facing pending court action or eviction dates in order to come to mutually acceptable arrangements which prevent further litigation action lAdhere to appropriate time-scales and regulatory requirements to ensure rehabilitation of customer accounts lAchieve monthly standards for quality and productivity lFollow company and TCF / FCA guidelines at all times lRecording all information obtained from calls on the system to ensure account status is always up to date lEstablishing collection goals in conjunction with the management and with the business KPI Essential experience and skills with in my position:- lI have previous experience in regulated financial services lI am IT literacy - keyboard and Microsoft Office skills, including Excel and Word lExcellent verbal and written communication skills lAbility to prioritise and work to deadlines lStrong telephony skills / negotiant skills August 2013 - October 2014 HMPS Hull Business Administration Requested back to the HMP HULL in March 2015 . Please find explanation at start of CV My duties include:- lManage and process all repairs for HMPS Hull lPurchase Ledger using the system Oracle
- 4. lResponsible for maintenancecontracts and liaising with contractors. lDiary management for the site office manager lOrganising travel, hotel and arrangements for staff training and meetings lData cleanse and system updates lOrganise and manage three managers correspondence via email, manage and distribute internal post lManage utility bills for all prison departments and utility data lNote taker for disciplinary hearings lLiaise with internal and external departments lProject manage and plan budget for the re-decoration of 5 wings of HMPS Hull lStaff / HR Administration including staff rotas, managing holidays, sickness January 2013 – August 2013 Hull Crown Court/Brighton Crown Court – Court Usher/ Court Clerk My duties include:- lManaging Court environment during proceedings, including liaising with offenders, families and witnesses lOrganisation and preparation of all court documents lIntroducing the judge to the Court lHandling court evidence lTaking notes within the court lCompleting all Evidence Administration October 2012 – December 2012-(Based in the Netherlands) Mercedes Benz – Customer Service Representative My role was owning a premium customer service experience to ensure that any issues raised are dealt with as efficiently, effectively and fairly as possible in line with relevant guidelines. I identify and analyse the causes of dissatisfaction and put in place pro-active solutions to meet the demands of the customer. As well as providing a first class professional service to our customers, I also ensure that information is passed to all relevant areas of the business, including the rest of the customer service team and sales management teams, to enable them to manage current and future performance. I was required to create and amend complaint reports for use by key stakeholders.
- 5. My duties include:- lTakinginbound and make outbound calls to customers lReception duties lAdministration for the repair centre lData Analysis and report writing lManaging customer complaints October 2010 –October 2012 Npower – Customer Advisor / Analyst I provide a broad range of complex administration support through investigating. Part of the role was to liaise with internal and external departments, conduct root cause analysis to explore all solutions before making an informed decision. I also challenge where necessary and manage customer expectations at all times. I provide constructive feedback to teams around the business to ensure data quality is upheld. I managed and maintain accurate records on relevant systems, identifying any inaccuracies and feeding back as necessary. I was responsible for reporting on work in progress to ensure workloads are managed and performance standards are met. Part of the role was to build relationships with other business areas and provide support, ensuring processes are consistent and demonstrate an understanding of the business. For this role I had strong customer service ethic and also be analytical and work within SLA’s. Making sure at all time I was a team player able to communicate at all levels. My duties include:- lTaking Inbound and making outbound calls lDebt recovery lUsing multiple computer systems and packages lCompleting credit checks / Setting up direct debits lAdministration including contracts and rate quotations lAnalysing performance and efficiency’s for both customers and staff and identifying cost saving strategy's lReporting findings to team managers on flow and efficiency's lProject managed a charity event for McMillan Cancer Research, raising over ￡2,000 August 2007 – October 2010 Farnells – Assistant Team Leader
- 6. I was apassionate and motivated consumer assistant team leader. I conduit between senior management and staff, as a assistant team leader I was responsible for managing a group of people and will spend time delegating tasks, negotiating workloads, assessing performance and reporting on developments. My duties include:- lManaged a team of 40 staff lFull administrative support including: lProactive diary management, involving extensive meeting arrangements, co-ordination and planning lCo-ordinate challenging travel schedules and itineraries lProcess expenses lProduce and collate documents (presentations for internal and client meetings, correspondence, reports) lPrepare agendas, meeting notes and action items for key meetings and take minutes lManage any on boarding for the vendor population, ensuring that all vendors have active passes as required, and all systems are maintained from a security and HR standpoint lTrack team whereabouts, including time-sheet entry and approval lAssist senior managers visiting from other office locations lManage extensive call volume (place, receive and screen calls) lLiaise with other assistants to ensure smooth and consistent service at all times lAdditional assignments and project work, as per business and project requirements lMotivated, coached and trained the team lHR duties including managing staff absence, rotas, shift patterns, performance reviews lDaily and weekly reports to ensure customer service targets were met lSales order processing lEnsuring team reached sales targets lManaging SLA’S December 2005 – August 2007 ISA – Sales Executive I was required to sell computer components to existing and new accounts while developing and maintaining a good relationship with clients. My duties include:-
- 7. lField Sales lVisit potentialcustomers for new business lProvide customers with quotations lNegotiate the terms of an agreement and close sales lGather market and customer information and provide feedback on buying trends lRepresent your organisation at trade exhibitions, events and demonstrations lIdentify new markets and business opportunities lRecord sales and send copies to the sales office lReview my own sales performance lMaking outbound cold calls lIncreasing product range lIdentifying business opportunities lMeeting and exceeding sales targets lExceed customer expectations and SLA agreements September 2000 – December 2005 Norwich Union – Claim Assessor My duties include:- lTaking inbound calls from customers lProcessing claims lEffectively deal with their claims, from initial enquires through to decision. lProviding advice to customers over the telephone and by email. lChecking and logging complaints lCollecting information and evidence to support complaints lResolving issues lAssisting over claim assessor with administration lAdhered to FSA guidelines at all times Key Skills lTrained and fluent in Microsoft Packages lTarget Driven lManaging People lSales experience in many different fields lCustomer service
- 8. lMotivating Teams lData Analyst lPlanningand organisational skills Education History l1993 – 1996 Hanson Upper School lQualifications gained – 8 GCSE’s including Maths and English. Other Qualifications and Trainings lPrison National Offender Management Information System. Trained in 2013 and used daily. lOracle Procurement Training, Level 2,3 and 5. Gained in October 2013 and used daily in my profession. lMicrosoft Power Point course. (Version 2010,07,03,02,00 & 97) Gained in 2010. lProject Management, Level 1, 2 & 3. Gained in 1998 at Manchester University lNVQ - Customer Service – Levels 1, 2 & 3 Distinction. Gained in October 2000. lMicrosoft Packages lMaster of Business Administration awarded by AACSB in 2005 lDisclosure of Scotland Certificate l3 Day First Aid Course lCRB cleared until the end of January 2016 Interests I have a keen interest in the Theatre, Arts and Fashion. I enjoy meeting new people and experiencing all that life has to offer. Recent circumstances have made me re-evaluate my career options and I am now in a position where I would like to re-locate and reach my full potential in a career that I can excel, learn new skills and contribute to a team performance.